The_Void Crazy Love is a little known eighties cult film that traces a boy's life through three key events. The film is Belgian produced; based around three stories by cult writer Charles Bukowski and brought to life by Belgian director Dominique Deruddere. Crazy Love does not have a particularly good reputation these days, although it apparently caused quite a stir upon its release and that isn't all that surprising considering the subject matter; although to be honest, nothing in this film particularly shocked or offended me. The central character is Harry Voss, who we first meet as a young kid who is learning about sex from his friend, with the aide of a few loose women. We then pick up a few years later and Henry is a schoolboy, befallen by an extreme case of acne that leads to him being rejected by the opposite sex and ridiculed by his peers. The third and final chapter sees the once bright young boy as a drunken waster who cuts a stark contrast to the boy we saw in both the first and second chapters of the film.The three parts of the film are all incredibly different and the director succeeds in creating an atmosphere to carry this off. Crazy Love is a 'coming of age' film; a favourite subject among Hollywood 'cookie cutter' filmmakers, but this one is about as far from the mainstream as you can get. The first segment is the lightest of the three, but still packs a punch as we watch the subject discovering sex and eventually getting acquainted with his hand. The second segment focuses more on the idea of teenage alienation and sees the film take a darker turn as the sensitive young man is rejected by all the girls because of his deforming acne. This provides a nice opener to the third section, which is completely dark and dismal and probably what earned the film its reputation - the ending is not something that many will forget in a hurry! Overall, it's not really surprising that this film hasn't gone down as an all time 'classic, but it certainly has its place among cult fans and that isn't surprising either. Be sure to catch this film if you want something a bit different!

robert_e_campbell this movie really has nothing to do with bukowski. there is the terrible acne, the yearning for love, and the alcoholism. other than that, when writer has made everything his own, and the people releasing this film should have billed it as "inspired by charles bukowski" not based of the poems of.it is told in 3 sections, and while the fist two sections are beautifully acted by the two boys/men playing "henry voss" (must not have gotten the rights to play henry chinaski), the 3rd and worst section is played by an actor trying to recreate Mickey Rourke in "Barlfy," only the make-up artists made him up to look even greasier. throw in masturbation with a 12 year old boy, a direct "elephant man" allusion, and an ending that makes one want to throw up, and you have a combination of ingredients that would make bukowski punch someone in the jaw. only i didn't even get that: i felt deflated and cheated. as a fan of bukowski's work, at arm's length, this is purely garbage.but i did get a kick out of thinking that it is possibly johnny depp playing guitar in the prom scene (which in bukowski's poem, he only looks through the window and observes, why the director decided to fictionalize this, i don't understand).rent this if you're a huge bukowski fan ready to be let down hard. it's in the same category of fante's "ask the dust" adaptation, about a struggling Italian writer in his teens, played by collin farrel.

coreyjwade This film deserves more props. It is absolutely charming, and in a very poetic way. The filming in itself is very smooth with each transition and has great purpose in every scene each of which converge, including the fine details. The shadows of the spreading rain drops during the masturbation scene is phenomenal. The build-up and execution of the dance scene is also about as romantic as I have seen.I can see why this film did not get the props it deserves. It has some controversial material, though it is all executed with superb and poetic class. The diversity of the three sequences are also extraordinary. Very effective imagery, and a story that is told so well that you know where it is going at the end. There are no tricks, just a heartfelt love story with Bukowskian flair. And after watching a documentary on Hank, I can say that this captures the work of the true man inside, not the reputation that he developed as a womanizer during one stage of his life.

latherzap One of the few movies that has the power to bring a tear to my eye. We see the life of Harry, as a young boy, as an acne-scarred teen, and as a lost soul thirtysomething. As a child, he has a naive enthusiasm for romance. But his socially awkward self and repulsive appearance lead to a lifetime of rejections. Until the end when he finally finds somebody who accepts him. Repulsive and unacceptable as his last acts may be, they are not a violation so much as they are his desperately grasping for somebody, anybody, to love.For me the movie is simultaneously depressing and uplifting. I will never forget the "invisible man" strategy he employs to get a girl to give him one dance. Or the painful scene of him as a young boy on the carnival ride with a girl, paralyzed with fear and unable to make any advances.Anyway, SEE this movie. It was released on DVD last year, and should not be too hard to find. Order yourself a copy if you don't see it at your local stores.